Critical International Relations - An Introduction

In Critical International Relations - An Introduction, the radical IR theorist James Der Derian provides an innovative text based on the critical encounters throughout history that have transformed international relations.

Unlike other books on world politics which focus on the perspective of great leaders, empires, nation-states, "great powers," etc., Der Derian's text focuses on the perspective of the under-represented, the demonized, and the neglected 'other' who are also actors of world politics. Ten historic struggles for recognition and power in world politics - from the Greeks and Barbarians to Humans and Cyborgs - will be narrated from the point of view of emblematic historical figures. The focus will not be on who wins or loses but rather on how International Relations is changed by alien encounters. The goal is to represent the alien, and in the process, to construct a critical history and pluralist theory for understanding the heteropolar conflicts of world politics today.